The limited self is made up of patterns of thought, emotion, sensation, energy, and action. Many of these patterns create stress, addiction, disease, or the sense of being stuck, overwhelmed, isolated, or disconnected. Transforming the limited self has historically been a complicated process, taking many years, accomplished by only the few. …Now, the simplicity of Shift 1 helps you rapidly diminish the pain and scattered energy of your limited self.
Gracefully navigating emotions is essential for living in today’s world. Give yourself the gift of the following exercise. Notice that each step you take calms the emotions, actually helping you get comfortable with the feeling of them.
Every person, deep at heart, yearns to live the highest levels of life; being awake to your yearning keeps you centered throughout the day. The wise learner in you is willing to do what it takes to Awaken. When you are in the learning mode, your life has direction, meaning, and momentum. You naturally use the pain or scattered energy of your limited self to trigger your learning.
Another common limited self pattern is moving our energy outward toward external people and objects. Instead of checking in to see what is right for us in the moment, we are conditioned to look outward for the answer. Yet, when we use the external as our point of reference, we are at the mercy of external circumstances. This is the cause of much of our anxiety. We feel literally mixed-up in the world around us. Even if we are not aware of it, much of our human suffering comes from trying to navigate this confusion. Shift 5 teaches us how to find the eye of the storm, the peace at the center of the chaos.
Using the list below, answer this question: "What have I been using as my external point of reference?"
My finances •
My image in the mirror •
The future •
My to-do list •
The past •
What's in the news •
My email inbox •
Another person •
A group
In this exercise, you practice changing from using the outer world as your point of reference to using your inner self as your point of reference.